Category: Miscellaneous

“OK, if we don’t find this Virgin Active gym in the next five minutes, I’m going home!” I said with frustration, as my hands froze to my umbrella. “I bet you will absolutely love it within five minutes of walking in!”, my friend Ali consoled me. Naturally, he was 100% right.

It was a typical London Saturday in February – wet, windy, and all the tube lines near me were “suspended due to engineering works”, so it took me forever to get to Paddington.

I had been invited to participate in a circuit-based workout organised by Virgin Active in its swanky new gym in Merchant Square as part of the #MyWorkoutFor series. This one was all about getting fit for the slopes and was devised by the gym’s instructors in collaboration with well-known blogger Jack Edwards.

It’s September and I can really feel the turn in the season. There is a chill in the air and people around me are dropping like flies with stinking colds.

Yet for some reason every time I go outdoors into the crisp air I feel an overwhelming sense of excitement wash over me, mixed with a kind of wistful, aching undertone I can’t quite explain.

I’ve never been this excited about the onslaught of autumn, and it’s slightly confusing that I feel this way now, in a year when I finally discovered my favourite way to enjoy the outdoors, and have spent the entire summer doing so. I should be sad the season for frolicking around in the sunshine is over, shouldn’t I?

I’ve always wanted to try out slacklining, but between climbing, work events, and attempting to still see my non-climbing friends, I’ve found it hard to find the time for it. Now that I’m injured seemed like the perfect time to give it a shot.

So on a Sunday my friends and I took advantage of the nice weather and took the slackline out for a day in East London’s Victoria park (along with a hula hoop for good measure).

The summer in approaching and us city dwellers are beginning to crawl out of our layers, where we have been hiding all winter, and look for entertaining ways to spend the longer evenings. But sadly, London salaries often do not match the price tags on trendy entertainment venues.

But there is no need to despair and stay at home! London has much more cheap, or even free entertainment to offer than you might suspect. So invite some friends, or that special someone, and head out to enjoy the summer without worrying about your wallet.

Here are just a few options I out together to help out with some ideas. Please share your ideas with me by commenting on this article, I’d love to know what else is going on in this city!

This blog has taken many shapes already in the short time it has existed, but increasingly it is gravitating towards climbing-related topics, as I am a little obsessed with the sport.

I’ve spent most weekends this summer outdoors learning to climb on different types of rock and in different styles. So far, my climbing partner Valentina and I have covered North Wales, Sheffield, the Wye Valley, Southern sandstone and limestone in Frankenjura, and we also have a trip to Italy coming up, and climbing plans in warmer climes in the winter.

Recently, myself, Valentina and our friend Tamsin embarked on an ambitious project to create videos, vlogs and blogs about everything to do with climbing and our lifestyle as we learn and develop our new skills.

The project goes under the name Vertical Souls. We have a Facebook page and a YouTube channel, and this blog will act as the written outlet for our thoughts and experiences.

Please follow us, like our Facebook page, and give us all the support you can! We are very committed to making this project work long term.